Louis André Martinet (December 28, 1849 - June 7, 1917) was a lawyer, publisher, medical doctor, civil rights activist and state legislator in

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

during the

Reconstruction era The Reconstruction era was a period in History of the United States, US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the Abolitionism in the United States, abol ...

Biography

He was born December 28, 1849, in

St. Martinville, Louisiana St. Martinville ()Jack A. Reynolds. "St. Martinville" entry i"Louisiana Placenames of Romance Origin."LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses #7852. 1942. p. 480. is a city in and the parish seat of St. Martin Parish, Louisiana, United States. I ...

, to Hipolite Martinet and Marie Louise Benoit. He was a prominent member of the

Comité des Citoyens The (; ) was a civil rights group made up of African Americans, whites, and Creoles. It is most well known for its involvement in '' Plessy v. Ferguson''. The Citizens' Committee was opposed to racial segregation and was responsible for multiple ...

, a civil society group whose most famous action was staging the arrest and subsequent defense of

Homer Plessy Homer Adolph Plessy (born Homère Patris Plessy; 1858, 1862 or March 17, 1863 – March 1, 1925) was an American shoemaker and activist who was the plaintiff in the United States Supreme Court decision '' Plessy v. Ferguson''. He staged an act of ...

in an effort to oppose racial segregation resulting in the Supreme Court decision

Plessy vs Ferguson ''Plessy v. Ferguson'', 163 U.S. 537 (1896), was a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision ruling that racial segregation laws did not violate the U.S. Constitution as long as the facilities for each race were equal in quality, a doctrine that ca ...

. He served as a state representative in the

Louisiana House of Representatives The Louisiana House of Representatives (; ) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 representatives, each of whom represents approximately 4 ...

from St. Martin Parish from 1872 until 1875. He was admitted to the bar in Louisiana in December 1875. Then obtaining his first class law degree from

Straight University Straight University (known as Straight College after 1915) was an American historically black college that operated between 1868 and 1934 in New Orleans, Louisiana. After struggling with financial difficulties, it was merged with New Orleans U ...

Law School the following year in 1876. He was a notary and set up his notarial practice in 1888 which continued to operate until his death. In February 1879 he was appointed to the City Board of School Directors, re-filling the position he had vacated the previous year in May 1878. In 1882 he was made the Special Deputy Surveyor for the Port in New Orleans. He published ''The New Orleans Crusader'' (1889 - 1896) newspaper and was active opposing segregation. In the 1890s he obtained a medical degree from the Flint Medical College in New Orleans. He survived an attempted assassination May 5, 1896 when he was accosted by a drunk Matthew J. Ryan who placed his revolver in Mr Martinets stomach. Bystanders saved Martinet by overpowering Ryan and handing him over to the police. He died in 1917.

Personal life

In 1882, he married Miss Leonora V. Miller and later they had two children, although one died while still an infant.

Legacy

The Louis A. Martinet Legal Society is named for him. In 1984 the Louis Martinet Society organized efforts to elect more Black judges in New Orleans.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinet, Louis André People from St. Martinville, Louisiana Members of the Louisiana House of Representatives Straight University alumni American newspaper publishers (people) Politicians from New Orleans 1849 births 1917 deaths African-American Catholics 19th-century members of the Louisiana State Legislature

Biography

Personal life

Legacy

Further reading

References